An Unexpected Blow
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Spoilers up to "The Real Thing". After waking up, Fargo has a hard time dealing with upsetting and unexpected news.


**Disclaimer**: I don't own Eureka and never will. No copyright infringement intended.

**Author's Note**: I was so completely shocked and saddened by what happened to Holly, and this just poured out of me. I can't wait to see how Fargo deals with this. Enjoy!

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When Douglas Fargo woke up, he never expected the words "Holly's dead, I'm so sorry" to come out of Carter's mouth. Time seemed to slow down after that and he wasn't aware he had started hyperventilating until after he was led over to a chair. He tried to listen to everyone telling him to breathe, but it was like his brain had short circuited. He couldn't think beyond the fact that the girl he loved was dead.

After finally managing to calm down, he asked a stupid question. "Are you sure?"

Jack nodded. "I'm so sorry, Buddy. But if it helps, she didn't suffer." He knew it wouldn't mean much to his friend, but he wanted to help in any way he could.

"Can I see her?" Fargo just needed to make sure.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" A worried Allison eyed him warily. She wanted to keep an eye on him for the next few weeks. She had lost Stark a few years prior, and knew what losing a loved one felt like. She didn't want him to go through this alone.

"Why don't we leave him alone for now? We can't help Fargo when we're crowding him like this." Henry also knew what it was like to lose someone, and he figured Fargo wanted space.

"I'm fine. I just want to see the body and then I'm going home." Once there, Fargo planned to get drunk beyond belief. He didn't want to deal with this, and his emotions were currently all over the place. He couldn't deal with Holly dying. Oh God, how could she be dead? He loved her, and now she was gone forever. It was hard to process.

"I'll take you. Allie, I think I'm going to stay with Fargo tonight. Do you mind?" Jack didn't want to leave his girlfriend, but he also didn't think his friend should be stuck in his home by himself, grieving for the woman he loved.

"No, of course not. Fargo needs you – I can have you all to myself tomorrow." Allison caught sight of Jo and Zane's reunion and couldn't help but glare at her. She still had some residual anger leftover from the fake reality.

About fifteen minutes later, Fargo was allowed into the morgue to see Holly's body. Jack stayed back to give them some space.

"Hey, Holly. I'm so sorry this happened to you. I love you so much, you know that, right? I pictured a future with you. Wherever you are, I hope you're at peace. That's all I ask." He swallowed back a sob, but failed. Fargo's knees gave out, but Carter's quick reflexes came in handy, and he caught him in time. The sheriff hugged the younger man as he started to mourn for Holly.

"Shhhhh. You're fine, Fargo." Jack started rocking him back and forth. Normally this would be awkward (And it was probably going to be avoided later), but he didn't care right now, not when he was needed. He would gladly give his comfort.

"I miss her." Fargo continued to sob, wishing that this hadn't happened, that Holly being dead was only part of the fake reality.

After about ten minutes, he had calmed down enough for Carter to let him go and help him stand up. He pretended to ignore Fargo's red eyes, and ushered him back to the car. They wouldn't speak of Carter comforting Fargo again.

Once home, Fargo found the little bit of alcohol he had left and downed it. He wanted to get drunk and forget everything, which was a bad coping method, but he didn't care. Jack didn't accept anything offered, opting to stay sober. He wanted to be thinking clearly.

Fargo woke up with a hangover the next day, just as Holly's family arrived in town to claim her body. He wished he could have met them under better circumstances, but it was too little, too late. He and Holly would never get to do a lot of things together.

The wake was held a day later, and all of Fargo's friends showed up to support him. "We're here for you whenever you need us. Call us day or night." Jo smiled sadly at him, gripping Zane's hand in her own.

"Yeah, we don't care what time it is or whether we're busy or not. You call us, and we'll come." Zane wanted to hug him, but didn't because he was worried about how awkward it might be. He and Fargo had bonded during their little unexpected trip to space months earlier, and he considered the man one of his friends now.

"I will take that into consideration." He just stared off into space, ignoring Jo and Zane's worried looks. Fargo had spaced out quite a few times today, and it was freaking his friends out.

"We'll write it down so he knows, JoJo. You good with that?"

"Yeah, sure." They steered him into one of the viewing rooms and forced him to sit down next to Grace and Henry.

Holly was buried the next day. All Fargo felt was numb, and he used that feeling to his advantage. He didn't shed a single tear as the minister started to talk about her life, and how she was taken from them at a young age. He tuned everything out because it was just so much easier than giving in to the pain. He didn't want to hurt anymore.

It wasn't until later that night, when he nearly broke apart again, that Fargo got desperate and called someone he hadn't talked to in months. "What's up?" Claudia Donovan had been thrilled when she saw his number pop up on her cell.

"I lost the woman I love. She was murdered." Fargo just repeated the facts as they were because he could get through it easier.

Claudia's heart dropped and she felt like crying. "I know what that's like, and I'm so sorry. I lost one of my best friends and someone else I knew really well. We almost lost the Warehouse, too. If you ever need someone to talk to, please call me." She hoped he took her up on that offer, but she doubted he would. She was still angry and prone to tantrums about Jinxy and Mrs. Frederick.

And that's when Fargo finally fell apart. He started to sob again, and Claudia cried with him. They talked (and cried) for about three more hours before hanging up because he had exhausted himself.

He had a long road of grieving ahead of him. Douglas Fargo was never going to fully move on from Holly Marten.

Her death had broken him, and that wasn't something that anyone recovered from quickly.


End file.
